UNT Health Science Center will host its 15th annual Research Appreciation Day (RAD) on Friday, April 6. RAD is an institutional tradition encompassing medicine, public health and basic science.

  The program provides an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to share their research efforts with the campus community and the public. The program encourages the development of joint research projects and increases the community's awareness of the outstanding quality and range of research conducted at the Health Science Center.

  This year’s keynote speaker will be Johnathan David Tune, Ph.D., who received his doctorate degree at UNT Health Science Center in 1997 under the direction of Fred Downey, Ph.D., in the Department of Integrative Physiology.

  Dr. Tune is known for his research on local metabolic and endothelial control of coronary blood flow as well as his recent work to delineate the mechanisms of coronary vascular dysfunction in obesity and insulin resistance. Current studies in his laboratory also focus on the role of adipokines in the pathogenesis of coronary atherosclerotic disease. His research has been funded by the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association and currently by the National Institutes of Health.

  Dr. Tune currently serves as associate professor of cellular and integrative physiology at the Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis.

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